Type II DiabetesHow Vitamins & Nutritional Supplements May Help

Type II diabetes is a chronic disease that can cause many health problems and early death if left untreated. The good news is that by making changes in your diet and lifestyle, many people have even gotten rid of diabetes.* Type II diabetics do produce insulin, but it is not used properly in the body, and hence the cells don't get enough glucose or the nutrients they need and instead the sugar is left in excess in the bloodstream.

Common Symptoms of Diabetes

High blood sugar, fatigue and excess urination are the key symptoms of diabetes. You may also have constant hunger with rapid weight gain, dry, itching skin, obesity, high blood pressure and accelerated aging.

Common Causes of Type II Diabetes

Type II diabetes is generally accepted to be caused by eating an excess of sugar over a long period of time. Then your body produces lots of insulin to try to take care of the excess sugar, and this seems somehow to damage the cell receptors that allow the sugar inside. When the cells are insulin-resistant, and they do not accept much sugar – this sugar is instead seen in excess in the blood. Too many refined foods, especially too much trans fatty acids, can also be a cause. In addition, many vitamin, mineral and other nutritional deficiencies can also contribute to developing this insulin resistance. Some researchers even think that our over exposure to chemicals in our environment today is contributing to the rising incidence of diabetes.

Vitamins, Minerals and Other Nutritional Supplements

There are some studies that show that many vitamins and minerals and other nutritional supplements can help those with diabetes, but some of those that seem to be the most helpful include antioxidants, and vitamins B, C & E*. The antioxidants are important because the excess sugar in the blood seems to cause a lot of free radical damage, and the antioxidant vitamins can help counteract that. This would include the B, C & E vitamins. The B Complex vitamins are often low in diabetics, perhaps because the excess sugar causes more B to be used up. C can also help reduce complications that come with diabetes, like heart disease and blindness*. It can also help to increase insulin tolerance and normalize pancreatic activity.* Vitamin E can also help prevent heart problems*, which are 2 to 4 times more prevalent in diabetics.

Vitamin A is also crucial to diabetics, and vitamin D is needed for the production of insulin*. These are both found in high vitamin cod liver oil; just make sure and get one with the natural forms of vitamins A & D – some cod liver oils take out the natural one, and add back in the synthetic forms! Cod liver oil has been shown to improve glucose response and other markers of diabetes in several studies*. It has also been shown to lower blood pressure caused by stress-elevated levels of cortisol*. The vitamin A in cod liver oil promotes healing and can protect the retina*, both concerns for diabetics. The vitamin D in cod liver oil promotes the absorption of minerals, like magnesium and calcium, and can therefore reduce blood pressure.* DHLA is a form of alpha-lipoic acid that is a vitamin-like enzyme needed for converting glucose into chemical energy, or ATP.

As far as minerals, there is some evidence that chromium can help insulin to work better, and so is very important for those with type II diabetes. Doctors in Italy found that those with type II diabetes that took 450 mg of magnesium per day did a better job of clearing sugar from their bloodstreams and producing more insulin than before they took the magnesium supplements. You can get magnesium from coral calcium in a very absorbable form along with calcium and trace minerals. Vanadium is needed to drive the sugar in the blood into the cells, and zinc is a co-factor in the production of insulin.

Noni, Goji and Mangosteen Juices may all be helpful in cases of Type II Diabetes*. Noni is full of minerals, and can also help with detoxification. Goji and Mangosteen are both very high in antioxidants. Gymnema is a plant that helps to reduce blood sugar levels by lowering insulin resistance, and Co-Enzyme Q-10 also seems to help with both diabetes and the high blood pressure that often accompanies it.*

Foods high in chromium include whole grains, liver, onions, shiitake mushrooms, broccoli, green beans and many types of fruits. You can also get more chromium in your diet by including liver once per week and nutritional yeast every day. However, once again, organic is really best as organic produce tends to contain more nutrients and fewer pesticides.

While healing, it is absolutely essential to reduce the amount of carbohydrates in your diet to around 60 grams per day until your blood sugars normalize. Refined sugars are a big no-no, but even something like whole grain pasta or brown rice should be limited to no more than 1/3 cup per meal (or 15 grams of carbohydrates). You might be able to have a little more if you are getting regular, vigorous exercise. For more info, see "The Schwartzbein Principle" by Diana Schwartzbein, MD. She also recommends small meals and at least 2 snacks per day, each balanced with protein, fats, and a small amount of carbohydrates (7.5 grams). If you don't reduce carbohydrate and sugar levels in your diet, in our opinion, you will not be able to heal and you will probably have blood sugar that is too high and causes damage, even if you take supplements or medication.*

We think it is an error to follow a low fat diet if you are diabetic.* Well, we think it's an error to follow a low fat diet even if you are not diabetic. But diabetics especially need to have more fat in their diet to supply much needed nutrients as well as to slow down the absorption of carbohydrates into their bloodstream. In fact, unless eaten to excess, traditionally used fats do not contribute to diabetes. New fangled fats like vegetable oils usually contain trans fatty acids which cause insulin resistance*. This means you need to stay away from almost all prepared foods today, in boxes and in most restaurants, as most of them contain vegetable oils and trans fatty acids.

Your diet should actually be rich in animal foods with lots of fat to provide the vitamin A, vitamin D and zinc you need. Raw butter, cream, whole milk, cheese and eggs from pastured animals provide vitamins A & D, and red meats and shellfish have lots of zinc. Unfiltered olive oil is a good source of vanadium.

There is some anecdotal evidence that celery juice, Jerusalem artichokes, onions and spinach can help restore normal blood sugar levels*. Bitter melon can be found in Asian food markets and can also help lower your blood sugar by increasing the body's ability to produce insulin*.

Note: If you make significant changes in your diet, including adding vitamins or other nutritional supplements, you want to make sure and have your blood sugar retested if you are on any diabetes medication, to see if you need to have that decreased.

Other Ideas

Exercise is very important for diabetics. A walk or some type of exercise an hour or two after each meal would be very helpful, as the exercise helps to drive the blood sugar out of the blood into the cells.

Stress also can raise blood sugar levels, and so in addition to all the above including adding more vitamins and perhaps nutritional supplements to your diet, it is possible that a change in job or lifestyle may be necessary to keep your blood sugar levels in balance.*

* This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

FDA Disclaimer: None of the statements on this website have been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). They are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or medical condition. Furthermore, none of the statements on this website should be construed as making claims about curing diseases or dispensing medical advice. Please consult a physician or another health care provider before trying any nutritional supplement, making changes in your diet, or doing new exercises, especially if you are pregnant or have any pre-existing medical conditions or injuries.